


Fairytale of New York

by Evondahlkilledthelocals



Category: Inception (2010)
Genre: Christmas Story, M/M, canonical AU, holiday fic
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2012-12-18
Updated: 2012-12-18
Packaged: 2017-11-21 10:24:50
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,198
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/596645
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Evondahlkilledthelocals/pseuds/Evondahlkilledthelocals
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Eames was a bum and a punk and just happened to be all that Arthur ever wanted for Christmas.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Fairytale of New York

**Author's Note:**

> If you have never heard "Fairytale of New York" By - The Pogues, go [HERE](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pv0hlbWpa1w) now and listen to the greatest Christmas song ever.
> 
> Title (obviously) comes from that. Plot is almost a song fic, only not really?
> 
> Other song that is referenced is [this song](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2gmiSPMHrWQ) by the Vince Guaraldi Trio.
> 
> Characters all belong to Nolan.

“Oi! I used to love this song! Turn it up, will ya Ariadne?” Yusuf had shouted a few moments ago, before Arthur lost all sense of hearing to the loud singing of Yusuf accompanying the stereo. _It was Christmas Eve babe. In the drunk tank an old man said to me, won’t see another one. And then he sang a song…_

Arthur watched as Yusuf wrapped his arm around Ariadne, who was laughing loudly at the lyrics of the old Celtic song. Arthur sipped his eggnog and brandy mixture, watching the scene in front of him with a fondness about it. The lights were off, sans for the large tree in Arthur’s living room of his New York City penthouse. Dom was back at home, wanting to enjoy his first Christmas morning home without Mal and with his kids the next morning. Yusuf and Ariadne had asked to stay with Arthur, on a whim, and had brought along a literal basket full of brandy to celebrate with him. They said they wanted a real American Christmas, with ice-skating and cheesy things like visiting Rockefeller Center for it. The tree, for once, was littered with presents underneath it. It was an unusual sight for Arthur, so used to being alone for the holidays at that point. The smell of fresh sugar cookies lingered from Arthur’s baking session earlier, and Yusuf’s iPhone was hooked up to Arthur’s dock to play a Christmas mix he had made.

Yusuf’s phone rang suddenly, making Arthur laugh under his breath as he sipped his eggnog again. Yusuf answered it quickly, sounding frustrated as the conversation went on. He glanced to his coat, making Ariadne and Arthur frown. A few moments later, Yusuf hung up with a suffering sigh, “Eames is in the drunk tank at the station near here.”

“Does he expect us to come and get him?” Ariadne asked carefully, pursing her lips as she did, “This is our first Christmas together though!”

“I’ll go,” Arthur stated simply, watching as Ariadne shot her gaze over to him. He smiled, shrugging at her as he set his eggnog aside. He grabbed his peacoat, slipping it on over his maroon sweater that had an oxford under it. He buttoned it up quickly, grabbing his gloves as Yusuf tried to shush Ariadne’s protest. Arthur laughed deeply under his breath, smiling over at Ariadne and Yusuf warmly, “You said it, this is your first Christmas together. You two should be enjoying it. I really don’t mind, honestly. Just don’t burn my house down and text me the address.”

Yusuf couldn’t text any faster if he tried.

* * *

Arthur signed the paperwork necessary, paying Eames’ bail with an agonized sigh. The police working laughed at him, giving him a knowing grin as they brought the extremely chatty Eames up to the front. Eames spotted Arthur, his eyes gleaming as he did, “Oi! Arthur! Aren’t you the dashing bloke tonight! Queen of New York City, yeah?”

“In your dreams, Mister Hudson,” Arthur used the pseudonym Eames was operating under in the United States at the time seamlessly. Though, Arthur only knew that from tracking everyone involved in the Fischer job obsessively since it ended. He just wanted to make sure they all stayed safe in order to ensure that he was safe. He took Eames by the arm, mouthing a thank you to the officers. They all laughed at Eames, shaking their heads almost fondly as Arthur led him outside. Eames hung on him with a laugh, shaking his head, “I’m not even that pissed yet! Blokes just starting things…”

“You could have fooled me,” Arthur mumbled, all but dragging Eames. With a mixture of the cold and the wind, Eames sobered up rather quickly. Much to Arthur’s delight, he was soon able to walk on his own again. They walked in silence together, Eames humming a song Arthur was slowly becoming familiar with. He glanced over to Eames, watching him with an unfamiliar warm feeling in the pit of his stomach. He would blame the cold for the pink on his cheeks, but he knew they were warm and flushing for other reasons. He had not been a stranger to his feelings for Eames. He was aware of them, which is why he venomously rejected them. Arthur was used to being the flirty one. He was the one that made the first advances on women and men alike and all the innuendo, even though it came off as sarcasm. That was why he was so against Eames, he liked to tell himself, because Eames was so open about flirting with him.

Arthur did not protest as Eames took his hand into his own, swinging it between them as he continued to hum. Arthur laughed at the sound, glancing over at Eames’ curious gaze, “You sound like what Broadway is missing. I guess they’ll always be waiting for you…”

Eames stopped them on the corner, staring at Arthur with a curious gaze. Arthur smiled up at Eames, leaning up to press a soft kiss at the corner of Eames’ lips. He figured, when Eames is drunk would be the best choice of a time to make his move. Eames’ eyes widened comically, making Arthur laugh lightly, “Come home with me you bum.”

“Oi, I’m no such thing!” Eames laughed, squeezing Arthur’s hand as Arthur led them along. They got to Arthur’s apartment a few minutes later, both racing into the lobby and into the elevator to escape the cold. By the time they reached the top floor, Arthur’s face was starting to feel warmed again and he began to feel more comfortable. He let go of Eames’ hand, slipping off his gloves and tucking them into his pocket of his peacoat. Slowly, Arthur unbuttoned his coat as the elevators dinged to signal their arrival. Eames trailed after him delicately, watching as Arthur slowly slipped his coat off and made his way to the door on the left end of the hall. There were only three doors to chose from and, not unlike the usual Arthur habits, his penthouse was the farthest away from anyone else on the floor.

They entered into Arthur’s home quietly. The music had switched to a more traditional sounding music, though Arthur recognized it as the soundtrack from _A Charlie Brown Christmas_. Arthur smiled fondly at no sight of Ariadne and Yusuf, seeing the guest bedroom door that had been wide open when he left was now closed. He felt Eames approaching as he dropped his coat to hang over the arm of the couch, turning to face him with a soft smile. Eames watched him with caution as he approached, stopping a few feet away. The song switched over to the instrumental version of Christmas Time is Here, making Arthur smile tenderly. He glanced over at his stereo system, watching as the vinyl record of the soundtrack that he owned spun slowly on the turntable.

Turning his attention back to Eames, he reached out to take one of Eames’ hands in his own. Arthur laced their fingers together, smiling shyly at Eames as he did. Eames let a small and rumbling laugh out, glancing down at their hands as he did. Eames stepped closer as Arthur perched himself on the arm of the couch, fitting his body between Arthur’s legs. Arthur let his hands fall to rest on Eames’ hips, smiling at him as he did. Eames shook his head, leaning close so that his nose was nestled against Arthurs, “Tell me I’m not seeing this wrong…”

Arthur sighed, reaching up to cup Eames’ cheek with one hand, the other holding him in place still. He realized in that moment, as he stood so that their chest were pressed together, that he might have led the man in his arms around for too long. That he managed to plant a seed of doubt in his mind, when all he actually wanted was to care for Eames as best as he could. He started to sway slowly in time with the music, pressing his forehead against Eames’ as Eames’ hands moved to wrap tightly around Arthur’s waist. Arthur hummed along quietly, slowly leaning in to press his lips to Eames’. Eames let a quiet but contented groan escape, his arms tightening for just a moment around Arthur’s hips. Arthur smiled into the kiss as Eames’ lips started to work against his own, letting his thumb brush against Eames’ stubble. Eames eventually pulled away, staring into Arthur’s eyes with a confused expression, “I…I thought you hated me, darling…”

“I could never hate you, Eames,” Arthur sighed out, letting his forehead lean against Eames’ again, “I’ve been tracking you for almost a year.”

“That how you knew I was Hudson then?” Eames laughed a bit, sounding amused as he did. He leaned in to kiss Arthur, the briefest of kisses, before continuing, “But you always turned me down.”

“I did not like not being the one in control and being flirted with, rather than the one flirting,” Arthur sighed, shaking his head as he did, “It was stupid on my part. But, I’ve built my dreams around you and I can’t have you not there now.”

“Are you saying what I think you are?”

“I’m saying...” Arthur paused, contemplating how to finish before he figured he should show it instead. Stepping back from Eames’ hold, much to Eames’ confusion, Arthur walked over and shut down his stereo system. He unplugged the tree, navigating by the dim light that flooded in through his floor length windows. He took Eames’ hand, leading him on the familiar path to his staircase. Arthur muttered about the stairwell, smirking as he felt Eames trip a bit on his way up the stairwell. Arthur led him into his own bedroom, ignoring the lights in favor of the glow of the Rockefeller tree lighting the room. He reached up, pulling his sweater off as he turned to face Eames. Eames watched him intently, smiling as Arthur reached up with trembling hands to unbutton his oxford. He took the shirt off, hanging it over the lounge chair in the corner of his room along with his jeans. He watched Eames take his own jeans and sweatshirt off, smirking at the sight. Nodding towards his bed, Arthur led them over and crawled under the duvet. Eames curled up behind him with a content sigh, letting his arms drape over Arthur delicately. Arthur folded his hand into Eames’ as he attempted to curl in closer, smiling as he fell asleep.

* * *

Arthur woke up the next morning to the feeling of someone’s chin resting on his thigh. He groaned, propping himself up enough to see Eames lying across the top of his bed with a cup of what appeared to be hot chocolate in one hand, the other fiddling with a loose thread on the mattress. Arthur reached down, taking the mug from Eames’ hands to set on the side table. He tugged at Eames’ hand, pulling Eames so that Eames was lying on top of Arthur, though the thick comforter separated them. Arthur made an irritated noise, making Eames laugh as he pulled the covers from under his body. Arthur shivered at the loss of heat, only to have Eames lie down on top of him with the covers on top of them both instead.

Arthur gave Eames a fond smile, reaching up to run his hand through Eames’ hair. He let his hand stop at Eames’ neck, his thumb rubbing gently at the spot behind Eames’ ear. Eames gave a contented sigh, closing his eyes as his lips parted slightly. He leaned down, pressing his lips against Arthur’s gently, as though he was still hesitant. Arthur made a confused noise, pulling back to stare into Eames’ frightened eyes. Arthur could see the insecurity behind Eames’ eyes and frowned at it, pressing his fingers in a soothing circle on the back of Eames’ neck, “What’s wrong?”

“I’m still trying to accept this is real.”

Arthur frowned deeper, his free hand moving to rest on Eames’ hip. He pulled so that all Eames’ weight was on top of him, smiling up at Eames’ furrowing look, “I’m sorry I ever made you feel like you could doubt this. Sorry that I led you on like I did, honestly. I want you Eames. I don’t want just half of you, either. I want all of you. All the identities, all the trails, and all the wonderful quirks. It just took me a while to see it…”

“You don’t do anything half-assed do you darling?”

“Nope,” Arthur smirked, leaning up to kiss Eames once more, “You can consider moving in with me your Christmas gift to me…”

“Oh you cheeky bastard,” Eames growled leaning down to nip at Arthur’s neck. Arthur laughed out loudly, wrapping his arms around Eames’ waist. It may have taken Christmas Eve and a little alcohol, but Arthur was glad he was finally getting what he wanted for the holidays. Eames would later claim they were the living Fairytale of New York, and no matter how much he protested it, anyone could tell that Arthur secretly agreed.


End file.
